Mendoza: Mayweather needs no KO vs. Pacquiao

This is not to breast beat but if only to set the record straight: I kept telling people willing to listen that the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight will happen.

Despite all obvious indications pointing to that, many of my friends insisted it would not materialize.

When Mayweather announced on Saturday it would be a go, I got bombarded with text-messages.

“Nakaisa ka naman (roughly, you did it again),” came one text-message.

But let me clarify again. Even if I kept saying the fight was going to happen, I really never wanted it to happen.

How’s that?

Well, although the fight would break all existing purses in boxing (the Ali-Frazier in “The Thrilla in Manila” in 1975 drew “only” $24 million), the possibility of their fight as virtually deteriorating into a non-fight is as strong as Rudy Duterte’s aim at gunning for the presidency in 2016.

I am not trying to be a kill joy.

Look at the records. Mayweather’s 47-0 mark has only 26 knockouts to The Money’s name.

Goes to show Mayweather hasn’t got much power in his fists. In the last eight years alone, he had only one knockout win—against Victor Ortiz.

And that even happened because Ortiz wasn’t looking when Mayweather whacked him with a right to the face.

Lesson in that fight: A fighter should never lose sight of the man in front of him. Ortiz, after absorbing a point deduction for intentional headbutt, was trying to argue a point with referee Joe Cortez, giving Mayweather the dubious luxury of unleashing the most ill-mannered punch in the beak-busting business.

Because Mayweather is a hardcore follower of boxing’s timeless adage “protect yourself at all times,” he will never hesitate to do an Ortiz act again if given the opportunity in his fight with Pacquiao on May 2 (May 3 in the Philippinies) in Las Vegas, Nevada.
But will he have need of that?

Mayweather has it all figured out: He will just dance, run around in circles, clinch and clinch to put Pacquiao away. As usual, no need for him to win by knockout. A victory on points would be more than enough.

It is Pacquiao who needs a knockout win. Otherwise, he loses on points.

SunStar website welcomes friendly debate, but comments posted on this site do not necessarily reflect the views of the SunStar
management and its affiliates. SunStar reserves the right to delete, reproduce or modify comments posted here without notice.
Posts that are inappropriate will automatically be deleted.

Forum rules:

Do not use obscenity. Some words have been banned. Stick to the topic. Do not veer away from the discussion. Be coherent.
Do not shout or use CAPITAL LETTERS!